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MMSE — MRCPsych Paper B MCQ

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EasyOld Age PsychiatryMMSEMRCPsych Paper B

Which cognitive screening instrument is scored out of 30 and includes orientation, three-word registration and delayed recall, serial sevens or spelling WORLD backwards, language tasks, and copying intersecting pentagons?

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Correct answer: AMMSE

The correct answer is A, the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). Its characteristic 30-point structure includes orientation, three-item registration and delayed recall, attention and calculation using serial sevens or WORLD backwards, language tasks, and copying intersecting pentagons. The score alone is insufficient because the MoCA and RUDAS are also scored out of 30; the specific task combination identifies the MMSE. The MoCA contains prominent executive and visuospatial tasks such as trail-making, cube copying and clock drawing. The RUDAS was designed to reduce cultural and educational bias and uses a different task set. The ACE-III is a broader 100-point assessment, while the CDT assesses clock drawing rather than this range of domains.

Reference: Folstein MF, Folstein SE, McHugh PR. "Mini-mental state": A practical method for grading the cognitive state of patients for the clinician. Journal of Psychiatric Research. 1975;12(3):189–198. https://www.elft.nhs.uk/sites/default/files/2022-01/mmse.pdf